Year 2019

The Finnish NHL ice hockey player Joonas Donskoi, who ended his career in 2023, currently lives in Minnesota with his wife and two sons. However, he still owns an apartment in Finland, specifically in Oulu, as he played for Oulun Kärpät for a long time before his NHL career.

Joonas Donskoi is originally from Raahe, which is located 75 kilometers south of Oulu and my hometown too. His family, relatives, and friends still live there. The city is also home to a skate hall that Joonas saved with his donation in 2019 while playing for the San Jose Sharks. Donskoi is especially remembered for his overtime goal in 2016, which he scored in the third game of the Stanley Cup Finals against Pittsburgh.

Year 2022

After the donation, local skateboarders planned to raise Donskoi's jersey to the ceiling of the skate hall as a token of appreciation. The next time Donskoi was in Finland was in the summer of 2022, three years after the donation, and during that visit, he had the chance to visit his hometown, Raahe. By then, Donskoi had moved from Colorado to play for the Seattle Kraken. The local skateboarders invited all the young skaters of Raahe to the skate hall and held an open event for all fans. Donskoi signed autographs for everyone, and finally, the jersey was raised to the ceiling of the hall. His wife, Devin, was also present.

Year 2025

Joonas Donskoi was forced to retire from his NHL career in the fall of 2023. After that, he began a coaching career with the local Minnesota Rogers Royals team. In March 2025, Donskoi returned to Finland and his hometown Raahe, where one of the founders, Valtteri Karjula, recalled that Donskoi had once promised to come back and do a kickflip (Translate: "Thanks!!! I could come and do a kickflip next summer 💪".) Donskoi had previously promised in an Instagram comment that he would do the kickflip.

To keep his promise, the former NHL star had no choice but to put his helmet back on and do it. Okay, there was no time to practice the kickflip, so the kickflip turned into a kickturn. That's also a good achievement for a hockey player!

Pst! This coming Friday, I’ll get to see Joonas Donskoi back on the ice. He’s playing in a charity game against Oulun Kärpät in his hometown of Oulu. The team also features Sebastian Aho, Niko Mikkola, Jesse Puljujärvi, Mikael Granlund, Olli Määttä, Markus Nutivaara, Leo Komarov, Pekka Rinne, and Justus Annunen.